Last night the rain, envoys from a storm to our south, paid us a visit. Our white plumeria tree must have played host, so many of its blossoms now carpet the ground at its base like abandoned party favors from the late night revelers.

Our summer seems to be winding down in its own subtle way, so it was a pleasant surprise to find a bag of these late bloomers, a gift from a friend’s yard, hanging on my kitchen door.

Mangoes are the sweetness of summer sunshine wrapped in rainbow hues of blended colors. I carefully pull each rounded fruit from the bag, taking in their scent and turning them gently round and round in my hands, admiring the way the colors dance and blend. The sight of a ripening mango always sings to me of watercolors and it is a challenge not to drop everything, load up the brush, and start painting immediately. I want to memorize the way the colors mingle so subtly from cool greens to vibrant yellow. But these beauties are ripe and smell good enough to eat on the spot.

The solution is a few quick set ups taking photos for reference …

a couple of loose sketches, and then back to the kitchen.

As I peel and slice my way through memories of summers past, I cannot help but stare for a moment at my hands, now covered with mango juice…what is that color? Gamboge? Maybe a mix of Orange Lake and Hansa Yellow or even Aureolin? I sift through the discarded peels … Is that a hint of Quinacridone Gold next to Rose Lake? And what a lovely purple, maybe a mix of Ultramarine Blue and Permanent Magenta or even Alizarin Crimson? Alright, this is becoming distracting, time to paint.

Exploring

My creative journeys are not always planned and unless there is some sort of deadline involved there is always room to indulge in my penchant for meandering. Case in point, I had been continuing my explorations of waterfalls and simple still-lifes with collage, but now with the arrival of freshly picked inspiration I am excited to wander off the paper trail, maybe explore different styles while playing in pools of color. I will probably linger here for a bit and enjoy the remains of summer, at least until I feel the urge to meander once again.

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29 thoughts on “Inspiration Freshly Picked”

I am so taken with your mangos….such beauty. I am sitting here eating left over mango salsa from last nights supper (early lunchtime for me) and after cutting 4 mangos last night I can freshly see that you have captured ALL the colors that a mango emits. Just beautiful paintings, gorgeous….can’t say enough.

Oh dear! I have often wished mangoes were as easy to peel as bananas, but until they are, I use a very sharp bird’s beak paring knife and peel it the same as I would an apple. The knife has to be very sharp so that the peel is very thin. I have seen some clever ways on video, and even on an episode of BBC’s Hercule Poirot using a sharp knife and a large spoon, which was very interesting, but when it comes down to trying new methods I am much too impatient to get to the eating and take the straight forward knife approach. This is all done over the kitchen sink, I get a little messy, and I like to sample while I slice, but this is how I learned to do it from when I was a kid watching my dad. One of these days I would like to try the knife and spoon method. I hope you find a safer method that will not hurt your thumb. Peace.

Thank you, that is sweet of you to say. Mangoes are always such willing subjects, as are tomatoes, one of the first things I ever painted (and still do now and then, like visiting old friends). You probably have a garden full of fun subjects (and delicious ones too) 😀 Thank you for stopping by!

Oh my, what beautiful mangoes! Your watercolor rendition of “mango orange” is fantastic. And I like that you paired the mangoes with the plumeria flowers. I’m enjoying the thought-sensation of eating mangoes with the sweet scent of plumeria in the air. Mangoes are my favorite fruits :-).

Thank you for your kind comments and the feeling is mutual. I have so enjoyed visiting your site and being inspired by your lovely art, mouthwatering photographs, and great ideas in and out of the kitchen. Peace.

I was thinking th exact same thing when I looked at the first photo of the mangoes. Watercolours! What amazing colours. I absolutely love your watercolour at the end of your post. So crisp and beautifully styled ❤

Oh your mangos are breath taking, absolutely stunning. I love mangos and regard them as absolute favorite fruit also some of the most beautiful. You have captured them perfectly! I’m going to go stare at your beautiful mangos now, just a little more please!

You paint a lovely picture with your pen as well as your paint brush! Love your “rainbow” of mangos which are a juicy treat! And your watercolors are a feast for the eyes! I look forward to seeing more of your art! 💜🎨😊